Allegheny Formation

Allegheny Formation Stratigraphic range: Pennsylvanian
Type	Sedimentary
Underlies	Catskill Formation
Overlies	Pottsville Formation
Lithology
Primary	sandstone, coal
Location
Region	Appalachian Mountains
Country	United States
Extent	Pennsylvania, Maryland, West Virginia, Ohio
Type section
Named by	H. D. Rogers, 1840

The Pennsylvanian Allegheny Formation is a mapped bedrock unit in western and central Pennsylvania, western Maryland and West Virginia, and southeastern Ohio. It is a major coal-bearing unit in the Appalachian Plateau of the eastern United States.

Description

In Pennsylvania, the Allegheny Formation includes rocks from the base of the Brooksville Coal to the top of the Upper Freeport Coal, and was defined to include all economically significant coals in the upper Pennsylvanian sequence. The formation consists of cyclothemic sequences of coal, shale, limestone, sandstone, and clay. It contains six major coal zones, which, in stratigraphic order, are:

• Upper Freeport Coal
• Lower Freeport Coal
• Upper Kittanning Coal
• Middle Kittanning Coal
• Lower Kittanning Coal
• Brookville Coal

Members

Glen Richey (PA), Laurel Run (PA), Mineral Springs (PA), Millstone Run (PA), Clearfield Creek (PA); Clarion (OH, MD, PA, WV), Kittanning (PA), Freeport (PA, MD, OH, WV); Putnam Hill (OH, PA); Vanport (PA, MD, OH, WV); Butler (MD, PA), Worthington (MD, PA); Washingtonville (OH, PA, WV), Columbiana (OH)

Age

Relative age dating of the Allegheny places it in the middle Pennsylvanian period.

See also

• Geology of Pennsylvania
• Geology of West Virginia